Stories from 24 July 2006
Philippines: State of the Nation Address
Manuel L. Quezon III in Manila does an excellent roundup of Filipino blogger's reaction to the President's State of the Nation address.
China: Chen on trial
Chinese human rights activist Chen Guang-cheng is on trial today (July 25). Nickwong anticipates that the result won't be good (zh).
China: disappearing
Jeremy Goldkorn from Danwei writes about the disappearing of Beijing and Shanghai because of urban renewal.
Hong Kong:
Yeahayeah blogs about the demonstration against Israelis bombing in Lebanon in Hong Kong (zh).
Hong Kong: goodbye Suzie Wong
The romance of Suzie Wong takes place in Hong Kong, an classic scence is in Star ferry pier, Central. Hong Kong government is now planning to demolish the pier. Diumanpark criticizes the government of such acts in his blog post: goodbye Suzie Wong (zh) and urges people to sign up...
Hong Kong: learning from parent
ESWN translates a blogpost from learned friend on how children are being influenced by their parent in racial stereotype. “To the parents of the children — how do you teach your children!“
DRC: Demonstrations Leading Up to Election
Opposition party blog UDPS Liege announces an intensification of peaceful protests in the capital Kinshasa leading up to the July 30 election. Protests are planned for July 25, 27, 28 and 30.
Gripes with Footballer Lilian Thuram
Of Lilian Thuram, a French football player of Guadeloupean origin, France-based Senegalese blogger says (Fr): “Wanting desperately to become a Martin Luther King-style defender of the Black cause, Thuram seems to have no friends around him to tell him to calm down and to stay away from politics, an artform...
Latin America: Mercorsur Summit
The Mercosur summit ended with Hugo and Fidel stealing the limelight says Erwin Cifuentes. Greg Weeks sorts out the implications of Venezuela's new membership in the trade bloc. Finally, Ricardo Carreón argues that Mexico could and should become the trade organizations first non-South American member.
Tajikistan: Russian “Illiteracy”
Elizabeth writes about the decline in Russian language abilities in Tajikistan.
Kazakhstan: Criminal Medical Tender
Leila translates a Russian-language post about a health care scandal in Kazakhstan's Karaganda region.
Georgia: Soap Acting
For those who have always wanted to know what acting in a Georgian soap opera is like, Breed describes his experience.
Armenia: Vardavar
Both Nessuna and Jeremy express their dislike of Vardavar, a holiday celebrated in part by throwing water on complete strangers.
Armenia: Escape to the Village
Zarchka writes on the value of escaping the city for the village.
Zimbabwe: Big Brother plan
The Bearded Man commens on an article in the Washington Post about plans being mooted by the Zimbabwean government to monitor e-mail and other electronic communication. He writes: “It would take a sizeable army to sift through emails, SMS and telephone calls – yes, I know that much of it...
Nigeria: Diane Evans tour
Ore's Notes remarks on a visit to Nigeria by author Diane Evans, who she notes is part-Nigerian.
South Africa: Eastern Cape Paper
Farrel Lifson of politics.za comments on a forthcoming position paper from the Eastern Cape provincial division of the African National Congress (ANC), which will say that the South African government is being taken over by right-wing forces resistant to transformation.
African countries need technocrats
Africa Unchained points to a passage in George Ayittey's book by the same name, which runs: “We need TECHNOCRATS to fix our broken, dysfunctional institutions. REPAIRMEN or plumbers who will unclog the gutters or the system. CUTLASSES to chop down all the dead wood.”
Kenya: Job loss
“It's odd to quit a job,” writes Kenyan Musings, who just quit hers. “People think you are nuts…but it gets to the point where if you allow yourself to be depleted to the point where your professional tank is empty and you are running on fumes of habit, everybody loses....
Kenya: Meeting with Bill Gates
4Sheezy wonders what might have happened if she had managed to get a meeting with Bill Gates while he was in Kenya, to talk about his HIV/AIDS work.
India: Naxals in Central India
The terror of Naxal forces in Central IndiaI at Indian Muslims. “Vast areas of Chhattisgarh are now controlled by Naxals (termed Naxal because of Naxalbari village in West Bengal where the armed revolution started in the 60s) but the BJP state government that had come to power on the plank...
